


Gifted Life

by ShadowHiddenByTheMoon



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: BAMF Bilbo Baggins, Bilbo and Thorin are in love, Female Bilbo, Fix-It, Kili and Fili are lovable shits, M/M, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-19
Updated: 2016-09-05
Packaged: 2018-05-27 15:29:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6289963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowHiddenByTheMoon/pseuds/ShadowHiddenByTheMoon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bilba Baggins didn't know why she was given a second chance at life but you can be sure that she was not letting her loved ones die again without a fight. She might even have help with her goal from another who was given the same chance as her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Begin Again

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own anything but the little plot bunny in my twisted little head. My work is unbetaed. I have changed a few things in my story. The first is a hobbit's lifespan, they can live up to 250. Bilba aged quickly in her original life because the ring was taking her life force. Hobbits can also have children up to around the age 175. Female hobbits live with their parents until marriage and they also fall under the rules of the home. Hobbit come of age at 44 too.

Chapter 1- Begin Again

She wanted to scream about how unfair it was. Hadn't she earned her peace? Hadn't she earned the right to see her beloved again? Bilba clenched her eyes tight, tears leaking down her face. She opened them to look at the walls of her room, knees pulled up to her chest. She was in a room that she hadn't used as her own since before her parents' deaths. She didn't understand. Was she being punished? Had she done something wrong? She had fallen asleep on the boat to the Undying Land, old and sick at 133-years-old with her Frodo sleeping beside her but woke back in her childhood room as a young tween. Bilba buried her head and sobbed into her knees. 

"Bilba? Flower what's wrong?" Her father's voice made her heart clench. She hadn't heard his voice in such a long time. Oh, she missed him but she had been prepared to see him and her mother in the maker's gardens not in a life she had once lived. 

"Papa." Her voice sounded so young, so innocent. Her father opened the door and she reached out to him. Pleading silently for the warmth and comfort her could give her. 

"Oh, my Flower. Was it a nightmare?" Bungo sat beside his little girl, wrapping her in his arms. She climbed into his arms, curling up into a ball. "Bilba?"

"Papa, I don't know. I don't-" Another sob cut her off. Bungo gently rearranged his daughter in his lap so he could rock her while smoothing down her long hair. They sat like that, Bungo rocking her and Bilba sobbing into her father's shoulder, for an unknown amount of time. Long enough for Bilba to once again fall to sleep and for Bungo to drift with his daughter safe in his arms.

The next day Bilba pretended that everything was alright, even though she felt like her soul was ripped to shreds. She didn't understand what was going on but she would find out. She learned that she was once again 21, a tween as she had suspected. She knew that Fell Winter was only two years away. It wasn't long but if Bilba was going to live her life once again she was going to do what she could. She blessed her memory as she remembered her tween self-being adventurous and always curious. Her loving parents had always indulged her curiosity. She would need to use that.

"Papa, Ma can we visit Tookland?" Bilba asked at dinner, she fiddled with her food more than she ate it. Even after her adventure, she had a hard time going back to the hobbit's 7 meals a day and even in her younger body, she wasn't as hungry as she should be. 

"We can go on a walking holiday next week to Tookland if you wish. Why the sudden urge flower?" Belladonna asked as she watched her daughter push her food around instead of eating it. 

Bilba knew her mother was watching her carefully. "I-" She cut herself off. How was she going to tell her parents she wanted to learn to defend herself and them against wolves? "I'm thinking about joining the Bounders when I'm older. I wanted to talk to some of the uncles and cousins about it and what I would need to learn." 

Bungo choked on his ham in shock at what his daughter said. "Bounders! My flower, you don't need to be a Bounder. You are a Baggins-" 

Belladonna interrupted him. "What your father is trying to say is that you don't have to decide what you want to do now. You have some years to go before you come of age after all, but if you wish to talk to some of our family about it now that's fine." Belladonna ended the conversation there. She was not having a fight at her table. The glare she shot at her husband said that too. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Bilba almost started fidgeting at the look her grandmother gave her. She knew she should have stayed with her parents in the sitting room but her grandmother had asked for help in the kitchen, something she only ever did with her favorite grandchildren. Bilba tried to concentrate on the scone dough she was mixing. 

Adamanta Took could see something different about her granddaughter. It was the look in her eyes and the way she stood. It was the same look and stance that some of the Brandybucks who guarded the Old Forest got after a few years. It was knowledge of things outside the Shire's borders better left unknown to the peaceful population. "Bilba, what have you seen?"

Bilba broke her silence and couldn't stop the flood of words once it started. "I don't know what's happened. I don't know why I'm being punished. Was it because I couldn't save them? I lived my life like I promised him and now I'm reliving it when all I wanted was to see my beloved. I wanted to see my love and his nephews and all the others who died before me. I wanted my peace after living through two wars and the loss of my mate." Bilba dropped to her knees crying as everything caught up to her. "I wanted to see my Frodo heal and smile again. I just wanted my family whole for the first time."

Adamanta drew her granddaughter into her arms. Her mind raced with the new information about her favorite grandchild. She tightened her gri before drawing away to look at Bilba. "Oh, little one. I don't believe you are being punished. Hush love, dry your eyes. That's a good girl." She wiped Bilba's eyes, holding her chin so they were looking each other in the eyes. "Bilba you listen to me. You aren't being punished. The Valar are not cruel. If you have lived your life once maybe you were sent back to right some wrongs. You said you lived through two wars?"

Bilba nodded. She moved her head away from her grandmother's hand and lay it on the shoulder before her. "Yes. The first one I lost my mate and the boys. The second was at the end of my life. Oh Frodo, my poor boy, he was forced to take the One Ring to Mordor. I found that ring, it should have been my responsibility. Instead, it fell to him. He came back with pain and a haunting darkness. My poor boy." Bilba felt the tears build again. "He should never have suffered for my mistakes.

"My little one. Listen to me. You were given a great gift. You need to decide what you wish to do with that gift." Adamanta calmed her granddaughter before the tears could start falling. "You have knowledge of what is to happen. What will you do with it?"

Bilba closed her eyes. Pictures of her life before flashed through her mind. She saw Fili and Kili trying to prank her in the first week of the journey only for it to backfire on them. She saw long talks with the rest of the company around the fire late at night after they had warmed to her. Thorin telling her he loved her in the elven cells. Thorin presenting her with weed-like flowers in Lake Town as he finally asked to court her. She saw the deaths of her mate and the boys she came to love and call her own. The pain of loss and the fading that had settled deep into her bones, even as Frodo gave her a new reason to live with his bright eyes and smile as he gave her the flower crown he made for her. Frodo when he returned from his quest so broken and silently begging for peace to be given to him once again. A peace he would never receive. 

"I need to learn how to defend myself and others. Grandmother, I need to learn to fight. I have to save them." Bilba pulled away from her grandmother, hope filled her for the first time since she woke in this life. She could save them. All of them. Her parents, her beloved, her boys, and the one she saw as her son. She could save them all.

"Then that is where you will start." Adamanta nodded at the determination she saw in Bilba's eyes. Her granddaughter was going to be a force to be reckoned with if she has something to say about it. "Let's go get you some teachers."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Adamanta kept her word. She recruited two of her sons to teach Bilba how to fight. Bilba's Uncle Isengrim taught her how to use her body as a weapon while her Uncle Hildigrim taught her how to shoot a bow. Bilba's parents didn't truly understand where this drive to fight came from but they both supported her as the time stretched on. One year soon passed and as the second was starting she was gifted with an elven crafted bow and a set of throwing knives. Bilba continued to show her commitment to learning, surprising her family with how well she performed as time went on. Bilba herself slowly lost track of time and it wasn't until the first hints of cold came, months before proper, that time caught up with her.

"Ma can I go out to collect herbs today?" Bilba slowly ate her eggs. With her weapons training at first light, she also took lessons with her parents. Her mother was the best healer in the Shire and in her first life she didn't show any want to learn more than the basics. This life she learned everything she could. After morning training Bilba would go to lessons with one of her parents. Three days a week were dedicated to lessons with her mother on herb lore, medicine, legends, and history while three days a week were lessons with her father on how to run the Baggins family and the estate. The last day was a day of rest or training if she could get away with it.

Belladonna smiled at her little girl who seemed to have grown up in the past two years. "That's fine. Merriella was complaining of light contractions yesterday so I'm going to be with her today. That baby is a week overdue so it's coming out today, like it or not."

Bilba giggled at that. Merriella's little girl was being stubborn but she would be born healthy. "Okay. So substitute lessons for herb gathering. I got it Ma." She shoved the last of her eggs into her mouth before racing out. Her lightweight green skirt fluttered around her legs.

"My little flower, don't forget your basket this time. I don't want you using your shaw again." Bungo called after his daughter. He smiled into his teacup as he heard her bump into a door in her haste to leave the smial.

"Got it Papa." Bilba called racing out the door with a large basket on her arm. Bilba spent the rest of the day gathering every healing herb she could find. She wanted to get everything she could before the first snow came and it was too late. That was what happened in her first life and she wasn't going to let so many die because of sickness when she could prevent it. She also collected some wild fruit to dry and can for more food. 

The rest of the week continued on in that fashion. Her parents just smiled as she brought more fruits and herbs into the smial as the days passed. They let her dry and can her bounty without a complaint. Though the day she brought a deer home made her father faint at the sight of the dead animal on his kitchen table and her mother cuddled her for such a grand kill. Belladonna eagerly helped her daughter skin it and prepare the meat into cuts so that they could smoke, dry, and pickle it as they saw fit. The skin Belladonna happily treated and turned into a new cloak for her daughter to wear and show off for all who saw it. 

As the week closed the first snow hit. Bilba woke to a white storm outside her window. The feeling of dread filled her belly, almost to the point she wanted to be sick so the feeling would subside. She tried to reassure herself with the fact that she had stocked all three of the larders with foods and that would last the winter. She also knew that her grandmother had done the same in Tookland.

Adamanta had ordered all the Great Smials to fill their larders to capacity with foods that would last. No one questioned why. They just did as they were told, knowing that such an order would only be made if it was truly needed. Tookland was built in such a way that it could house and feed hundreds of Hobbits in times of conflict. Bilba knew it was going to be needed. When the river froze in a month, Hobbits were going to need to be moved to a secure location where they would be safe from the wolves and orcs that would soon follow. Some Hobbits would be forced to move before the freeze as their food supply would run out within weeks. 

Bilba shivered as she walked the hallway to her father's study where she knew he would be after seeing the snow. The crops hadn't been harvested as it was too soon and he would be worried about food stores along with feeding all under his care. She slipped into the silent room. Bungo was sitting at his desk, the year's crop journals and finance books were open before him. A few letters, that could only be crop reports, sat to the right of his hand, inkwell and pen ready to be used to mark notes down. A cup of cold tea was forgotten at the top left corner of his desk, out of the way so there was no danger of him knocking it over. Bilba turned to look out the window. This was only the first of the many great storms that would cover her beloved homeland. "It's going to be a bad winter."

Bungo was pulled from the reports he was reading at the sound of his daughter's voice. He turned around to reassure her that everything was going to be fine. She was too young to worry about things out of her control. He stopped when he saw her though. She wasn't looking at him. She was looking out the only window in the room with such a sorrow reflecting in her hazel eyes like she could see something he couldn't. She was still in her light blue nightgown and her long hair was wildly curled around her shoulders from sleep but she didn't seem to notice. She was holding her elbows hugged to her body with her shoulders curled. The whole picture was a little girl who was afraid, afraid of something he couldn't fix. "Flower come here." He beckoned her with a single hand.

Bilba willingly turned from the window. She knew what this winter had in store for her home. She had trained for two years to help save as many lives as she could but she was afraid. Afraid that it wouldn't be enough, that she wasn't ready. Two years is such a short time to train. "Papa. Will you listen to me? I mean really listen and believe what I say?" She drifted closer to her seated father.

"My Flower what is it? Talk to me love." Bungo was a simple man but if there was one thing he was never simple with, it was his family. He would do and give anything for his girls. His wife and daughter were his whole world. He stood up to draw his distressed daughter into his arms. "I will listen to anything you wish to tell me."

Bilba sank into her father's warmth. She needed more help if she was going to save as many as she could. "Papa this is going to sound crazy, but I'm telling the truth. This winter is going to get harsher and last longer than it ever should. The Baranduin river will freeze allowing for wolves and orcs to cross over. Many Hobbits will be killed if no one does anything to help."

Bungo slipped back into his chair in disbelief. Bilba drew back herself, fear spiking at her father's reaction. "That's not possi-" He paused. His little girl looked like she was ready to cry at his hastily spoken words. She asked her to believe and he would. He would listen and prepare for the worst to keep her safe. "Okay. What do you want to do Little Flower?"

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Everything Bilba saw in her first life happened. The winter got harsher, the river froze over, and wolves came over with the orcs. The difference was the Shire was prepared. At the first signs of freezing on the river, families were moved to Tookland. Bungo had spoken to the Thain and Mayor saying some of the Rangers Belladonna knew sent reports of wolves and orcs sighted. They all agreed that it would be wise to consolidate food stores and group in numbers for protection.

For the first time in Bilba's life did she see the underground compound that was beneath her home. Bag End, as the home of the Baggins family head, was built like all clan head homes. With rooms for times of trouble, enough to fit not only close kin but all who lived on the Baggins lands. All the families that rented from Bungo were moved into the smial and all food added to the many larders that Bilba never knew were under her home. She had never in her first life seen this part of her home. She never knew that it was there. When she expressed her surprise to her father he laid out the blueprints of the smial for her to look over. She took time every day to look at the prints to memorize them in case she ever need the knowledge. 

It was during one of her sessions that she heard it. The front door was being attacked by something outside. A glance out the only window showed that it was growing dark. Bilba flew from the study and down the hall to her room for her daggers and bow that she placed next to the door. By the time she was armed, she heard the sound of splintering wood hitting the floor. They were in her home, ready to kill any who could be found. Bilba wouldn't let that happen. She was lucky that it was dinner time. 

As they cut down to only two meals a day, everyone besides her was in the underground compound eating. The trap door was shut and locked, as she always did when up in the main house. She could fight without having to worry about others being attacked. 

A growl echoed her hall. She stepped from her room with her bow pulled taut to meet the wolf head on. An arrow to the skull killed it quickly but alerted the other two wolves, along with the two orcs, that she was armed. Bilba, with her memories and abilities, wasn't ready to fight again but she gave her all.

The wolves lunged at her as she fired arrow after arrow. She ducked and weaves around the different attacks. The orcs joined the fight. She was forced to switch to her daggers. The second wolf lunged at her again. She spun out of the way with her arm extended, ripping the throat open with her blade. Her second blade was forced up to catch an orc blade that was about to cut into her shoulder. She kicked out, connecting in the orc's chest. He fell back leaving her open to throw her dagger into the second orc's heart that was behind the wolf. Bilba slipped another knife from her belt in time to fend off the first orc. She stepped back to avoid his strike but forgot to watch the last wolf. She felt teeth rip into her hip and she screamed. A downward slash of her blade had the wolf briefly retreating. 

Bilba fell to the side to avoid a second attack from the orc and the wolf was on her in moments. It bit into her shoulder with a vicious hunger. She screamed in pain even as she stabbed it over and over with both of her blades.

The orc was at her as she lay fighting off the wolf. She blindly swiped one of her blades at him, hitting close enough to his heart that he wouldn't get up again. She stabbed once more into the wolf before the pressure on her shoulder was released and the wolf's weight dropped onto her. 

Her body was screaming in pain and the crushing weight of the wolf on her small body made it close to impossible to breathe. She wiggled and fought, pushing all her pain and fear to the back of her head, only letting the adrenaline flooding her body to keep her going. Bilba somehow got out from under the wolf. With the knowledge that she would bleed out soon, she stumbled through the house to the entrance of the compound. She barely made it through the door before she blacked out from pain.

Bilba came back into the world with a scream. She didn't know how long she had slept but she wished she still was. She heard a voice, soft and soothing, try to calm her but all she could understand was blinding pain. It burned through her body like a raging fire. The soothing voice slowly entered her ears. Mutters and coos turned into words Bilba could understand. "Bilba breath, I know it hurts Flower but I need you to listen to me."

"Ma." Bilba clenched her teeth. A moan ripped from her throat as the pain in her hip spiked again. "Ma." It was a plea to make the pain stop.

"I know baby. This will help though. Listening?" Bilba forced herself to nod, her eyes and teeth clenched. A hand gently ran through her hair. "My strong baby. So strong. Just give it a little time Flower. The herbs will start working soon. I need to stitch your hip and shoulder. It will hurt. I can give you some poppy milk but not to much love. Understand me baby?" 

Bilba nodded again. She wasn't ready for this. Tears escaped her clenched eyes. "Papa." She needed the pain to end. She wanted her father to make it stop.

"I'm right here Flower. Ma and I are both here. Our strong girl. Feel my hand?" Bilba felt his soft hand gripped her own calloused one. "Okay drink your poppy milk and when your Ma starts stitching you up you squeeze my hand. You squeeze it as hard as you need to okay baby?" 

"Yes Papa." Bilba's voice was small and tight. She accepted the poppy milk as her mother brought the cup to her lips. She drank until Belladonna took it away. 

"Okay. As soon as the milk starts working I'll start stitching." Belladonna muttered to her daughter. Bilba didn't think the milk was fully working when her mother's needle pierced the skin on her hip. Bilba could only scream and clench her father's hand as the needle entered her flesh over and over. It was a blessing when the black spots in her vision expanded into unconsciousness.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

For three days Bilba had slept. Her wounds had developed an infection and a fever wrecked through her sleeping form. Her mother worked tirelessly to keep her fever down and to beat the infection as it caused havoc on her young body. Belladonna was almost afraid that she would lose her only child. 

"How is she Bell?" Bungo asked when he entered the room. He took his seat beside the bed as his wife changed the cool wet rag on his daughter's forehead. 

Belladonna smiled at her worried husband. "She's strong Bungo. She's wake and get better."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

It took a week for Bilba to recover from the infection and for the fever to retreat. It took longer for her wounds to heal though. Bilba only stayed in bed until her stitches were removed. After that, she was moving around the compound again. She was careful with what she did so she didn't reopen her wounds but she did her part within the compound. She helped care for the fauntlings and prepare meals. Bilba was relieved when the rest of the horrid winter passed.


	2. Returned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the Hobbit or Lord of the Rings as much as it pains me to admit. This story is unbetaed. Enjoy.

Chapter 2 - Returned

Bilba loved her parents, don't ever think she didn't, but she sometimes wished that they weren't so protective of her. She was 50 years old, not some fauntling. She shouldn't have to sneak out of her home to go drinking with her cousins. Ever since she was hurt in the Fell Winter as a tween Bilba's parents have done everything they could to keep her with them. At first, she was fine with it but it got old quick when one was trying to leave the house to train. Her parents had tried to put a stop to even that but Bilba wouldn't have it, reminding them that her training was the only reason she was alive. 

It was times like these that she hated that as an unwed female she had to live with her parents until married. She had thought the second child her parents were expecting would help the protectiveness they had for her die down. She was mistaken. In her mother's pregnant state the protectiveness she had for her firstborn got worse. Bilba's father found it amusing but Bilba wanted to bang her head on something. She was a grown hobbit, not yet married yes, but she didn't need to be coddled.

For the past 30 years she had developed ways to sneak out of the smial. The first time she had done so was soon after the end of the Fell Winter. She had gone to Tookland, where she received a warrior tattoo to go along with her new scars.

Her parents were both proud and appalled by the warrior ink adorning her skin. Though it had nothing on when she came home with her ears pierced at 32, something that was borderline taboo to have done as the ears were one of the most sensitive parts of a Hobbit's body. Bilba shook her head to dislodge her thoughts from the past. She had supplies to acquire for a long trip with 13 Dwarves. After all, she did talk to Gandalf that morning before he had gotten to the door.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Thorin woke slowly. The room around him swam into view, leaving him confused. The halls of his maker looked like his room back in Ered Luin. Thorin remembered begging for Bilba's forgiveness and making her promise to live her life to the fullest. She had forgiven him and promised him. He had left the world with warmth in his heart. So the question was, how was Thorin back in his old room when he knew he died.

"Uncle! Ma said breakfast was ready and if you wanted any before we leave to hurry up." Kili's voice pulled Thorin from his thoughts. His heart clenched as the last image he had of his youngest nephew was of his dead body falling to the snow cover ground. He was alive but so were his sister-sons. He had a second chance, a chance to fix everything he did wrong on the journey. This time he wouldn't fail. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Thorin had made sure to leave the meeting with the other Lords as soon as they gave their verdict. He would admit, he was pissed that they wouldn't help him. With the knowledge that his mountain will be reclaimed, his anger grew with every denial the Lords gave. He was calmed of his anger with Dain when his cousin gave a reason for not helping when he asked, a reason that he could understand and respect. Dain did have his own people to care for and sickness was washing through the Iron Hills leaving many of his people weak. In times like these, someone could try to dethrone Dain if he and his men aren't there to guard against such things.

He left quickly to cool his anger at the other Lords and to hopefully beat the rest of the company to their burglar's home. He needed to see his beloved, even if she didn't know him yet. Somehow Thorin arrived at the Shire a day before planned. He rented a room at the Green Dragon Inn, where they also housed his pony. While he was anxious to see his Hobbit again he wasn't ready for the fussy, scared creature from the beginning of the quest. He wanted his Hobbit. His Bilba was strong, brave, and at home with the company. His Bilba loved him, faults and all.

Thorin got a sinking sensation as a realization hit him. This wasn't his Hobbit. Would she ever be his Hobbit again? Would he be able to receive her love when the trials that brought them together, that shaped them both, are gone? Would he compare this Bilba to his Bilba? Thorin sighed, was it fair to her when she would be different?

"Thorin." Any other time the breathy whisper wouldn't register in his busy mind but Thorin had trained himself to listen for her voice while on the quest. 

Thorin's head whipped to the left where Bilba stood, a basket of food on her arm and wearing a lovely dark blue dress with a silver bodice that left a sense of pride in his chest. She was wearing his colors for all to see. Her honey hair also had a dark blue ribbon tieing it back in a loose hold. Her hazel eyes were bright, even filled with shock.

Confusion flashed through him after that though. She shouldn't know him. It wasn't possible. No one else in the company had memories like he did, he had checked each and every one of them before he had left for his meeting. Thorin was about to open his mouth to question her when a second glance at her honey hair stopped him. There, on the right side of her face by her ear, was the braid he had placed in at Lake Town. The braid that he taught her how to do so that she could fix her hair if he wasn't there to do it. It was his courting braid. "Bilba, Ghivashel."

"Oh Lady of Mercy. You remember me? Thorin, love, you know me?" Bilba dropped her basket with no regard for the food in it scattering on the ground. She raced to her dwarf with tears in her eyes.

Thorin caught her as she flew into his arms. This was his Bilba. His One. "Ghivashel. I was afraid I had lost you."

"Never. I lived on like I promised. When I woke here I thought I was being punished but you know me. You remember. My love was returned to me in this new life." Bilba tightened her arms around his neck. She pulled her head back from his neck. Without hesitation or care of the number of hobbits pausing to watch them, Bilba pressed her lips to his own in a desperate kiss. She put all her love, sorrow, fear, happiness, and hope into the kiss. 

Thorin met her kiss with equal desperation. Teeth clashed and nipped lips in hunger for reassurance that the other was truly there. The kiss slowly softened til it wasn't one kiss anymore. It was many kisses stringed together with the softest brush of lips.

Thorin was the first to pull away. Bilba smiled up at him, her lips red and swollen from the abuse they were put through. Their foreheads came to rest together. "I love you." Thorin had only told her that twice before his death. The first time was in the Elfking's dungeons and the second time being as his last breath left him.

"I love you. I have missed you." Bilba returned. She had told him of her love almost every day since the company was locked up in Mirkwood but Thorin would never tire of hearing the words fall from her lips. He was just sorry he didn't use his own words more. She was his world, his One and he silently vowed to tell her how much he loved her more.

"Bilba Baggins!" The shrill voice of one Lobelia Sackville-Baggins broke the couple from their reunion. They turned, still embracing to see the scowling female in an obnoxiously bright yellow dress and green hat with her trusty umbrella in hand pointed at them to draw more attention to their act. "What do you think you are doing? Have you no shame? Running into a stranger's arms, a dwarf at that, and kissing him like-"

"Lobelia, shut up. I really don't care what you think and I don't want to hear it either. I am sure there are plenty at the market who would love to hear the newest gossip about Mad Bilba Baggins kissing a Dwarf so go bother them." Bilba dismissed her with a lazy wave of the hand and faced her love once again. "Lunch will be starting soon. Join me?" She didn't even register Lobelia's sputtering or the gathered hobbits' mutterings. How did they matter when her mate was standing alive in front of her. 

"Of course. Who am I to come between my Hobbit and her food?" Thorin chuckled. He had to fight himself to release her waist. He almost pulled her back when she stepped away.

Bilba gathered her fallen basket, ignoring Lobelia who was yelling threats and returned to Thorin's side. "Wise, considering I haven't eaten today. Come on, the Green Dragon has the best ale in the Shire."

The walk to the Green Dragon was quiet. They were content to just be together. The Inn was slow at this time so they were able to snag a table in the corner and order their food quickly. It wasn't until their stew, bread, and ale was delivered that they began talking.

"When did you wake?" Bilba asked tucking into her meal. The stew was as savory as it always was.

"I woke the day before my meeting with the Lords." Thorin answered. He took a moment to look at his love again. Her honey hair was long, longer than when it should have been. He also saw a silver earring in the top of both of her ears, a silver cuff right under them. Bilba hadn't had them during her first life with him. "You look different from last time. How long have you been in this life?"

Bilba paused in her eating. How would he take her answer so different from his own? "I've been in this life for some years Thorin. I was reborn around 30 years ago. At first, I didn't understand. It wasn't until I spoke to my grandmother that I figured out why I was sent so far back. The Fell Winter lead to the deaths of half the Shire. I was able to save so many Thorin." Bilba smiled bitterly at the end. "Why weren't you sent back to save your people from Smaug?"

"Because I wouldn't have been able to. I was sent back when I was needed. You were needed to save your people because you could." Thorin could understand where she was coming from. He knew though, it wouldn't have mattered if he was sent back to Erebor. There wasn't a thing he could have done to save his people. The attack was too sudden and far too strong for them to counter, even if they had prior knowledge of the attack. Thorin pushed such thoughts from his mind and took in his beloved. "So what changes can I expect?"

Bilba bit her lip nervously. "Well, I don't live in Bag End alone. I was able to save my father from sickness and my mother from wolves along with half the Shire. I am trained in archery, knives, and some sword thanks to my Took family and a few of my mother's Ranger friends." She paused to spoon more of her stew into her mouth. She chewed slowly thinking of what else was different this life. "My parents will be blessed with their long awaited second child by harvest."

"My congratulations. I know you had said before that they wanted more children but your mother could never carry. I pray to our makers that the child is healthy." Thorin smiled, hand slipping into hers on the table. Bilba nodded, a soft smile on her lips. "You and I both." The conversation stalled there. They sat together eating in warm silence, basking in each other's presence, hands clasped on the table. It wasn't until the food was consumed and plates were taken away that they picked up the conversation once again. 

"Tell me of your life after. I want to know everything. From my passing to now." Thorin requested. He wanted to know everything he missed the first time around with her. He needed to know that she was safe and cared for in his absence. 

"I was heartbroken Thorin. You are my mate. When you died I felt the fading settle into my bones but I pushed on. Gandalf returned me back to the Shire, where I found the Sackville-Baggins had declared me dead and moved into my home. They were auctioning off my things and I had to buy back everything." Bilba smiled at the memory. When she looked back it was amusing. "After that, things settled. I became known as Mad Baggins but I didn't care. Seven years after I returned to the Shire I became the guardian of my nephew, Frodo Baggins. His parents were my favorite cousins who died in a boating accident. I loved and raised Frodo like my own son." 

The hours passed with Bilba telling Thorin everything. Most of her story was dedicated to how Frodo grew up and how proud she was of her boy. She grew quiet in her talk about how she learned the truth of the golden ring that helped her so much in her journey and how Frodo shouldered the responsibility that should have been her's to bare. Thorin's hold on her hands tightened when tears gathered in her eyes at the memories. 

She spoke of how her boy returned to her so broken and the offer to sail to the Undying Lands with the elves. She then spoke of how she woke to in her tween body and what she did to prepare for the future. Thorin growled when she told him of her first battle and the wounds she suffered defending her people. She hinted at the ink hidden under cloth but wouldn't tell him what she had. Thorin couldn't have been more proud as Bilba continued to speak of how she joined the Bounder and sometimes patrolled with the Rangers. 

"My Bilba, the Warrior Defender of the Shire." Thorin grinned at her. Bilba laughed even when a blush bloomed on her cheeks. He stood, pulling her with him. "Come, I think it is time we go to your home and speak to your parents. I now get to formally ask them for your courtship."

"Beware the cast iron pan. Mother has a mean backhand swing." Thorin paled causing Bilba to giggle. "Relax Thorin."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"What do you mean you wish to court my baby?!" Bilba could say that she had only heard her father yell at someone twice in her both her lives combined. She almost felt bad for her beloved being on the receiving end. 

"Master Baggins I mean just that. Bilba is my One. I wish to court her by both Hobbit and Dwarven traditions. I, Thorin son of Thrain, humbly ask for your permission to court your daughter." Thorin stood tall in front of his love's parents. He wouldn't back down from this, even if a pregnant Belladonna held a cast iron pan in hand and glared at him from her husband's side. 

"Papa, please? Thorin is my mate. I know you are confused and think this is sudden but I swear, I know him very well. He loves me just as much as I love him. Please?" Bilba stepped up beside Thorin, hand clasping his arm in hope that her father would hear her words through his protective anger.

Bungo's eyes locked onto his daughter's. He went to deny her when he caught the look in her eye. It was the same look he saw whenever she was deep in thought. They were old, haunted by things he could never figure out, but they always had a hint of hope that always burned brightly. The hope was the brightest he had ever seen. He also saw the love that fueled it. Bilba truly loved this Thorin, even when Bungo knew they have never met before like his daughter was saying. He always knew where she was when she snuck out and always had some idea of what she was doing. He turned back to the Dwarf to truly look at him. His eyes reflected many things that Bungo didn't, couldn't, understand but foremost was the same love fueled hope that shown in his Bilba's eyes. He looked hard and cold with his thick clothes and dangerous weapons but he saw the ways he kept looking at Bilba. 

Bungo sighed. He didn't know how they knew each other. He didn't think he would ever know. Something to add to the list of things he couldn't understand since his daughter woke with a scream so many years before but he would accept it as he always did. He would do it for the little girl who fell asleep with innocent, carefree eyes and who woke with eyes that were far too old and pain filled for her young years. "Very well. You have my permission to court my daughter."

Thorin smiled, accepting Bilba's hug at the announcement. "I believe this belongs to you Bilba." He pulled the silver bead with his house and personal crest etched in then from the pouch around his neck. He had made it years before so that one day it would be worn in his One's hair. Bilba had worn it in her first life until Thorin died. After that, she had worn it around her neck on a chain as was custom for a widowed Hobbit to do with a ring. 

Bilba gazed softly at the bead as Thorin took the twine that tied her braid at the end and secured the bead in its place. She had missed the slight weight of the bead more than any worldly possessions when she woke into her new life. It had been the reminder of her promise to the dead Thorin and the love they held for each other. This time it was a promise of the future they would have together this life. "I love you."

"I love you Ghivashel." Thorin rested his forehead to Bilba's.

Belladonna and Bungo watched the couple absorbed in their own world. Their daughter and this dwarf were truly in love. They shared a look with each other, how did this love bloom so quickly? How did they meet and when?

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"A dragon? You are wanting to leave with a company of Dwarves to face a dragon on the other side of the Misty Mountains because you think this is your Call? Bilba please tell me I had heard you wrong." Belladonna watched her daughter flutter around their kitchen cooking and baking.

Bilba slipped the apple crisp from the oven and replaced it with a batch of ginger snap cookies. "Ma I know you think I'm crazy. I know it but I will be going. I don't expect you to understand but I pray you accept my decision because I don't think this is my Call. I know this is my Call. Gandalf will be with me and Thorin won't allow anything to happen to me. I will be well protected and I will also have my training." Bilba added more tomatoes to the pot of stew simmering on the stove. "You were younger then I am not when you went on her first adventure."

"I went to Rivendell to meet the elves, to Rohan to see the horse tamers, and to the Blue Mountains for trade agreements for your grandfather. Those are not the same as going to kill a dragon in a mountain." Belladonna glared at her daughter. She wished for days long passed when her little girl would beg for a lesson with a needle or a story to be read to her. Those were safe activities that didn't take her daughter from her sight like this journey threatened to if Bilba left. "I forbid it Bilba. You will not be going."

Bilba set the pan of shepherd's pie down to cool. She straightened her spine and faced her mother, determination burning in her eyes. "Ma, I wasn't asking your permission to go. I was telling you I was going. Not only am I an adult but this is my Call and I will heed it. You have no right to try and forbid me from answering my Call. It is against the Laws of Old. Only the called have the right to decide if the Call is answered and I choose to."

Belladonna slumped down in her chair, her head in her hands. "I know, my Flower. I'm sorry. I just worry about you. Your father and I almost lost you once. I don't think we could handle it if we really did lose you." 

Bilba left the food to wrap her mother in a hug. "You won't lose me Ma. I refuse to be lost." Belladonna gave a started laugh at that. Bilba smiled in accomplishment. "Now are you going to help me cook? We will be having 13 Dwarves and a Wizard joining us tonight after all."


	3. The Journey Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to remind eveyone that this story is unbeta'ed and if any mistakes are found I am sorry. I still don't own the Hobbit.

Chapter 3 - The Journey Begins

Bilba wanted to smack her boys as soon as they stepped through the door. "Fili and Kili take your muddy boots off this instant. I will not have you making tracks through my smial." 

The boys jumped in fright at the smaller female who popped up in front of them out of nowhere. Kili recovered first. "Kili son of Vili at your service." He gave a deep bow and came up with a cheeky grin on his youthful face. 

"Fili son of Vili also at your service my lady." Fili copied his brother, grin and all.

Bilba could see Thorin with the rest of the company behind them on her doorstep. He was watching the scene with a small smile and a spark in his eyes that matched the boys.

"You know something Thorin? Your nephews are just like you." She withheld a smirk at the surprised looks that the company exchanged between each other at her off-handed comment to their king.

"Really?" Thorin asked back casually. He stepped forward, Kili and Fili stepping out of his way. "What gives you that impression?"

"They have your mischievous eyes and grin. Not a good thing for everyone around them." Bilba smiled sweetly up at him. Thorin chuckled before Bilba cut him off with a quick kiss. She pulled back with a grin of her own. "Did you get lost again?"

Thorin groaned, arms wrapped around her waist. He bared his face into her neck, placing a soft kiss on the flesh he found before he pulled away. "You will never let me live that down will you?"

"Never." Bilbo winked with a cheeky grin. She turned from her love to the shocked company and wizard. "Gandalf just a heads up mother is not happy with you so you may wish to watch your hat tonight."

"My dear Bilba, what could your mother be mad at me for this time?" Gandalf looked amused at the idea of his old friend being mad at him.

"You missed tea today. Now come on all of you. Cloaks get hung on the wall, boots off and in the chest please." Bilba directed them to do as they were told. Thorin was the first to comply. The rest of the company followed his lead. "Big weapons get placed in the living room. I will not have them at the table."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"Papa? Just breath, they didn't mean any harm. Ma put the cast iron skillet down. You are not permitted to hit your guests." Bilba just wanted the night to end. The dinner had started out well enough. The company warming to the idea of their leader courting a hobbit, who was also going to be their 14th member. It wasn't until the food was done and Bilba was about to clear the table of the dishes that everything went to the pig pen. Bilba had never told the company in her first life but when they sang and threw her dishes around, they were insulting her instead of helping clean like they thought. Bungo, unlike Bilba in her first life, wasn't letting the insult slide as a cultural difference. He was taking it as a personal insult. 

"Uh? What did we do?" Kili asked confused. They had just meant to help clean up and show their appreciation for the meal.

"It's a cultural difference Kili. It's fine." Bilba smiled reassuringly at the bewildered Dwarf. "Thorin can you take everyone to the living room? I need to speak to my parents."

"Right. My apologies for any insults given tonight. We do not mean any harm." Thorin gave a bow before ushering the confused group of Dwarves from the room and down the hall.

"Papa they were only helping in their own way." Bilba gently took the skillet from her enraged mother. She needed tea. "For Dwarves, after a meal all who ate help their hosts clean the dishes. The song and throwing were just entertainment for us while they did so. They have a different way than us."

Belladonna growled, slamming her hand on the table. "They act like-"

"Dwarves. Ma enough. I understand that you aren't happy that I have been Called. I know you wish I didn't answer the Call. I know they insulted us and our home by throwing your dishes but they didn't mean the insult and I will be going. The only question is if we leave tonight and stay at the Green Dragon or if we leave in the morn after a full night rest in my home." Bilba set the tea in front of them both. "Do you want us to leave?"

Bungo sighed, all his anger leaving him with the idea of turning his daughter out. "No. Your right, they are Dwarves and have a different way." He looked at his still mad wife. "No, stay here. The guest rooms are already prepared. I think your mother and I will retire for the night though. Good night Flower."

Bilba helped her mother out of the chair. Belladonna kissed her daughter on the forehead. "Goodnight Papa, Ma." Bilba slumped down into the chair behind her. She sighed tiredly as she grabbed the tea. With her first sip of the drink, she closed her eyes. Warm muscular arms wrapped around her shoulders. She leaned back into her mate's arms. "Thorin the quest hasn't begun yet and already I feel the urge to stuff them into troll sacks."

Thorin chuckled, drawing her to her feet and into the living room where the company watched her with ashamed faces. "They meant no insult."

"I know. Believe me Thorin, I am well aware when a Dwarf is meaning to insult." She sits in her father's reading chair and directs her next statement to the company. "If it makes you all feel better, I found your performance enjoyable." That made a few of the company member to smile.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"So lass, how did you meet our illustrious leader?" Balin asked as they set out from the Green Dragon where the company had left their ponies. Bilba was walking beside his pony as her own was in a padlock on the outskirts of Hobbiton. 

Bilba laughed. "I met your leader some time ago. He came to my door and said he lost his way, twice. Truth be told, he and I didn't get along in the beginning. It wasn't until I saved his arse from being turned into a chew toy that our manner with each other improved." She gently touched her courting braid with a soft smile on her lips. Balin didn't comment, waiting for her to continue. "That tolerance turned to friendship and then love."

"Chew toy you say? Did a bunny attack him again?" Dwalin called back, having listened to the conversation. The company laughed, Bilba needed to hear that story.

Thorin flashed his brother-in-arms a glare. "A warg. She saved me from a warg when I foolishly raced into battle." He glanced back at Bilba who watched him with a soft smile. "If not for her quick thinking and courage I would have died that day."

"No you wouldn't have. Too stubborn to die by an overgrown dog." Bilba fired back, smile gone and smirk in its place. That got a laugh from the company. Thorin smiled once more before he faced forward. Bilba turned her attention to Dwalin. "So what was this about being attacked by a bunny?" Thorin groaned from atop his pony as Dwain happily launched into the story.

The rest of the journey out of Hobbiton was filled with the company telling embarrassing stories about each other. Fili and Kili broke out into a mock fight when Fili told a story about Kili being attacked by a bird and losing an arrow to said enraged bird. 

Bilba held up the company for only a moment when she stopped by a smial on the edge of Hobbiton. She left the company on the road as she and another Hobbit went behind the smial. She returned on top of her sandy tan pony. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"How much do we want to change? Do we chance things in the beginning?" Bilba asked Thorin quietly during the first watch. "Do we go to Rivendell?"

Thorin scowled at the thought of elves. "I would rather we skip the Elves but Gandalf will have his way, as we both know. We can skip the trolls. Wait til day to retrieve our swords."

"Yes, and leave those beasts alive to kill more innocent." Bilba huffed. Thorin nodded with understanding. "We will just have to think of a plan to kill them. Truth be told, I'm worried about being hunted again."

Thorin nodded but didn't reply. Bilba accepted the conversation as over. She shifted closer to the silent Dwarf while her eyes drifted to their sleeping company. Her soul, once filled with guilt and loss, was light and free. She was with her family again. Now all that was missing was her Frodo. He would come in his time but for now, Bilba was going to enjoy having her mate and company back.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Truth be told, both Bilba and Thorin forgot about killing the trolls when the time came. When the company came to the burned farmhouse Thorin called for camp, fought with Gandalf once again, and put Nori on pony watch. The only plan they had in place was to wait for the daylight before getting their swords but as fate would have it, the trolls not only grabbed the ponies again but Nori as well. This led to the search and capture of the rest of the company. Bilba was overlooked by the trolls when they stuffed their bounty into sacks. She followed them back to their camp before a plan popped into her head. 

The three trolls argued about how to cook the dwarves, Bilba was grinning as she switched her sturdy traveling clothing into a simple but pretty dark green dress with no sleeves and a dark leather bodice. This left the ivy tattoos that spiraled from her shoulder blades down to just below her elbows to show in all their metallic green brilliance. She tucked a few vines and flowers into her hair and made her presence known. "How rude of you three."

The trolls stopped arguing to look at the small female who appeared from nowhere in their eyes. The cook was the first to speak. "Who are you?"

"Can we eat it?" The second tried to grab her yet Bilba gracefully danced out of his reach. 

"No you may not eat me. I am Bilba, the guardian spirit of these lands. I have let your presence in my lands go without punishment but I will not let this pass. Those dwarves are my meal and you dare steal them from me?" She had her hands on her hips as she scolded them like fauntlings who were caught with a stolen pie. 

"Spirit?" The troll turned to the others confused. 

Bilba could hear the Dwarves whispering to each other but ignored them. "I demand that you return them to me at once or suffer the consequences." She shifted causing the firelight to catch on her tattoos, making them look like they were shifting on her skin. She glanced to the side as a flash of gray caught her attention. Gandalf was right on time.

"What do you think you can do to us?" The second one once again tried to grab her. Bilba just danced away for a second time. "These dwarves are ours."

"To stone with you then. " Bilba growled. Gandalf took that as his cue to split the rock, letting the sun shine upon the trio. The trolls didn't have a chance to even twitch a muscle before they were stone. "Well, that turned out well." Bilba turned away from the three new hideous statues to grinned at the dumbfounded company. A few minutes later found them free with the help of Bilba and her knife. 

Thorin, for all the anger he should have felt for being put into a sack for the second time or the amazement of Bilba's intelligence, he was more focused on the ink that shown from her skin. Bilba was checking over the three youngest, her back to him. He let his right-hand trail up her right elbow, over her shoulder, across her shoulder blade to rest on the three flowers clustered in the space between her shoulder blades connecting the two ivy vines together. Forget-me-nots, a flower for remembrance, done in a dark metallic blue. Bilba finished her inspection of the boys but stayed still, letting Thorin continue his own inspection. 

"Forget-me-nots." Thorin whispered aloud. It was one of the few flowers that Bilba spoke of in their first life that he could remember.

Bilba knew what he was asking. "Yeah. I thought it was fitting. I had planted three patched of them with my oak tree when I had returned last time. When I woke I found I missed the promise they stood for."

"So you had them put on your skin." Thorin let his hand slip from her skin. "I have never seen tattoos like these. How was the ink made to give such results?"

The whole company at this time was looking at them. Gandalf was the most intrigued. "The ink is an ancient practice. Only warriors of old were permitted to wear this ink on their body. I had thought the practice lost."

"We do not forget our history Gandalf. Warriors are rare among Hobbits now but they are not gone. I was given the right to the warrior's ink by the Thain on my 25th birthday. Old Took made the ink and placed it in my skin himself." Bilba huffed at the wizard. Really, how dare the old cod disrespect her and her people by implying that they didn't care for their past. Hobbits never forgot where they came from or who they once were. 

Gandalf must have realized that he had insulted her because he raised his hands in surrender. "I am sorry my dear."

Bilba accepted his apology before she slipped around a tree to change back into her traveling tunic and pants. Thorin called to her as she pulled her dress off. "We will search for their cave. Dori, Fili, Kili, and Ori are going back to break camp."

"I'll gather the ponies when I am finished and meet you then." Bilba answered his unasked question. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Bilba felt the urge to scream. Neither Thorin or Bilba had wanted to repeat the run for their lives from the wargs yet here they were doing just that. The ponies had spooked when the first warg scout had attacked, ripping themselves out of the hands of those who held their leads. Radagast was once again distracting the wargs and orcs but Bilba still hated it. 

"Thorin the elves are almost here. I think it would be wise to stand our ground instead of running to the tunnel." Bilba whispered into Thorin's ear. They were hidden behind a group of rocks, everyone pushing each other as close to the rocks as possible so no one would be seen. Thorin had one arm wrapped around her waist, holding her flush to his chest, while the other arm was holding Bifur and Fili against the rocks. 

A growl above them cut any reply he may have had. Thorin caught Kili's eye. Kili nodded readying his bow, arrow nocked. Bilba slipped one of her own knives out. Kili's arrow struck true, as it had in her first life, but like before he wasn't quick enough to re-nock and fire at the orc rider. Bilba though was ready. Before the orc had time to raise the alarm like in her first life, Bilba's knife sliced into his throat. 

"Let's go." Gandalf urged. They continued on undetected until Radagast turned around, leading the orcs back to them.

"Damn Wizard." Dwalin growled. He tightened his grip on dual axes, war hammer in Ori's hands. "Looks like we get a fight after all."

"Ready yourselves!" Thorin called out. His sword, Orcrist, was held in his hands. 

Bilba readied her bow beside Kili. Lord Elrond and his men were only minutes from them. She was the first to loose an arrow at the approaching orcs. Kili was seconds behind her. She lost herself in the battle quickly after that.

In this life she had fought orcs, wolves, men, and cursed creatures that inhabited the Old Forest. She had long since learned how to block out everything but the white noise of battle. She transitioned from her bow to her long daggers. Dancing between wargs and orcs, cutting and slashing, she defended her company. At one point she was back to back with Bombur and in the next, she pushed off him to tackle an orc off an approaching warg. 

Bilba couldn't tell you how long she was lost in the haze of battle but when she turned from another kill she found no enemy left alive. She let her eyes wander, checking on her Dwarves and seeing the elves that joined the battle before relaxing her stance. She closed her eyes, feet planted firmly on the ground. The earth under her feet hummed when she concentrated on it, grounding herself and releasing the bloodlust that had settled into her veins. When she opened her eyes she found all the Elves watching her. They had felt her. 

Bilba slipped her dagger into their sheaths and patted Sting's hilt as a silent apology for not using it. Her eyes sought out the Elves she had fought beside before. "Elladan, Elrohir. It is good to see you again my friends. Thank you for your assistance."

Twin Elves with dark hair stepped forward. The Dwarves shifted closer to Bilba but didn't say anything as the twins clasped arms with her in greetings. "As it is good to see you as well Bilba. We had not heard you were traveling our way." They spoke as one making a few of the Dwarves glance at Fili and Kili, who shared the same trait.

"It was unplanned. You both know my luck." Bilba smirk, leaning against Thorin who had stepped up behind her. "Every time I venture outside of the Shire I seem to attract trouble."

"Yes, I seem to remember the last time you came to visit you brought along an injured Ranger. Something about both of you going after a group of child snatchers and you attacking him thinking he was one of the men in the group and not a Ranger." Bilba glared at Elrohir, the younger, as he grinned. "This time you bring us Dwarves."

"I did not bring you Dwarves and Valar help you both if either of you try anything with them. These are my Dwarves and I will not allow your trouble." Bilba huffed. The twins only grinned in amusement. "Lord Elrond, have these two still refuse to learn manners when it comes to guests?" 

Lord Elrond, a dark-haired Elf with a simple silver band as a crown, moved his horse closer. "Bilba, you have long since lost the title 'guest'. I am afraid that you, an elf friend, will have to put up with their mischief just as much as the rest of us do. Now I believe you and your Dwarves would do with a meal and some rest."

Gandalf stepped up for the first time since Bilba had started talking. "That would be appreciated."


	4. Rivendell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I do not own the Hobbit

Chapter 4 - Rivendell 

The trip to Rivendell wasn't traveled quick enough in Bilba's mind. Elrond and his Elves walked with the company and the whole time the Elves and the Dwarves were trying and failing, to poke subtle hints that Bilba was more their's than the other's. 

Bilba could only be happy that neither Lord Elrond nor Thorin where part of this exchange. They walked with her between them all the way to the city. The Elven twins and Thorin's nephews were the main instigators, they walked side by side right behind Bilba, where she heard every word that was spoken and every jab is thrown.

"That is it!" Bilba swung her pack onto the ground at her feet as the group finished passing over the bridge into Rivendell. She spun on her heels so she was facing all of the Elves and Dwarves. "All of you, the only one I belong to in any way shape or form is Thorin because he is my mate and if any of you make one more comment on the subject I will personally make all of your lives miserable. Hobbits are renown for being silent and very vindictive." She grinned, all teeth and danger. 

Bilba snatched her pack up. Elrond and Thorin watch her pass them, the Elves in the group gulped in fright as she left to go to her normal rooms in the city she called her second home. Bilba wasn't joking, her eyes said it all. Some of the Elves, the twins mostly, have been on the receiving end of her wrath many a time and knew better than to push her.

"Bilba, our jeweled flower, you know we love you and didn't mean to cause trouble with your Dwarves." Elrohir called after Bilba's disappearing form, jogging after her.

"Bilba, our star shine flower, you know we didn't mean any harm. We were just making sure that they would care for you in the manner you deserve." Elladan continued on after his twin, only steps behind, following after Bilba as well.

"Bilba, our blessed flower sister, please-" The twins and Bilba were out of range. 

Thorin glanced at the Elven Lord. "Do I want to know what she has done to put such fear into your warriors?"

Elrond chuckled as he turned back around. "If you haven't incurred your beloved's wrath yet then endure to keep it that way Prince Thorin. We have all seen some of her... creative revenge. The Elves are not the only ones though, many of her Ranger companions felt her wrath before us."

"I will take your word for it Lord Elrond. I have only been on the receiving end of her sharp tongue and sharper wit." Thorin smiled at the memories of the few lashings his Bilba had given him in his first life.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"So this is where you stay when here? It's elaborate." Ori softly traced some of the wood carvings on the wall of the suite Bilba had claimed was hers. 

"It was a gift. Lord Elrond gave it to me when I finished my training with the Rangers. Not only is he friends with my mother but Lord Elrond has always had a close relationship with the Rangers so Rivendell is a regular rest. Some even call this place home. Lord Elrond gave part of his home as Ranger barracks, which was where I stayed during my training." Bilba didn't notice the soft smile on her lips as her eyes traced over the room but the others did. 

Kili was the first to speak up. "The twin Elves, you are close to them?"

"Elladan and Elrohir are Elrond's sons. I am close to the whole family, including Elrond's daughter Arwen, and Elrond's adopted son. Said son is the Ranger who allowed me the honor of becoming the first Hobbit Ranger. Strider is my favorite partner when I am outside of the Shire. Now no more questions, there is a bathing chamber we should all be taking advantage of before we dine." She dug into her pack to pull out a bundle of clothes. She then waved her Dwarves to follow her through a small hall that led off from the sitting room they were all gathered in.

"A private bathing chambers?" Dori asked surprised. He ushered Ori and Nori after her.

Bilba paused in front of the dark sheer cloth covered doorway to pull the cloth to the side. It reviled a large white polished stone hot spring bathing chamber. The hot spring was large enough to fit thirty beings comfortably. "Some warriors prefer to bath and relax in a secure area. Only Elrond, his family, and a few Ranger know this is here."

"We'll wait for you to finish lass." Gloin was about to turn around and leave when Kili and Fili rushed into bath chamber and jumped into the hot spring, clothes still on.

Bilba snorted in amusement. The two young Dwarves started to tug off their clothing in the spring. "And there is the lack of modesty that Dwarves are renown for. It's on par with all the Rangers." Bilba ignored the others. She wanted her bath. She set her clean clothing on the bench carved into the far wall to keep them dry before she stripped off her travel filth covered clothes. 

"Rangers don't give their female warriors the same privacy they give their other females?" Dori asked from his own place by the bench. He was folding his clothes as he took them off.

"Female Warriors are still warriors. Men and females are all trained the same and are treated the same. I lost my body shyness within the first month of training with Strider." Bilba acknowledged. "I thought Dwarves had community bathes."

"We do. I guess we just thought you would be like the few Hobbits we have met before. The ones I trade tea with were very, er, different." Dori stumbled and Bilba giggled knowing what he really almost said.

"Uncle! Look, look! Aunty has more tattoos." Fili yelled pointing at Bilba's back, which was turned to them.

That caught all the companies' attention. Fili was right, Bilba had more ink on her skin then they originally thought. Beside the vines and three forget-me-nots, she had a line of script going down her spine in a dark metallic silver that ended at end of her spine. She turned and approached the bath giving the company a full view of the rest of her tattoos. A vine, metallic black and riddled with thorns, curled from the front of her right hip down to wrap around her ankle. A silver and gold sunburst lay over her heart with a silver star in the center.

"Do they have meanings?" Dwalin asked in interest when Bilba settled down onto a ledge shaped in the spring's walls to soak away their journey.

Bilba closed her eyes with a happy hum. "Yes. The vines on my arms show that I am a warrior of the Shire. The writing on my back is my personal warrior's oath written in my people's ancient tongue. The black vine on my leg and hip represents the Fell Winter and how I almost died in my first battle. The flowers between my shoulders is a promise remembered." She slumped down deeper into the water as her muscles relaxed. 

"What about the last one? The one on your chest?" Thorin settled down beside her to unravel her courting braid.

Bilba opened one eye to look at the company with a lazy drowsiness. They were all waiting for the answer. Bilba almost forgot that she wasn't like the other Hobbits that the Dwarves did business with and that her actions and inks confused them. Even Thorin, her Thorin from her first life and now in this one with her, didn't know about Hobbit culture and history. "The star was a gift from the Rangers. They used Hobbit ink but the design and color tell any who sees it that I am a well regarded Ranger. The sunburst around it is also a gift but I think I'll leave that one a mystery for a time longer." They groaned in disappointment but Bilba only giggled. "Come on, clean. The sooner we finish, the sooner we eat."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

The company had been in Rivendell for a week. Things were relatively calm. Thorin had his map read again and the company took the time to restock and reenergize. Things were uneventful and that was when it happened. The Elven twins decided that they wanted to prank someone. It just happened that Ori was the one who got caught in the prank instead of a passing Elf like they were most likely planned. Bilba seethed as Dori carefully washed and combed the colored sugar honey out of his little brother's hair. "I'm going to kill those two. I'll meet you all at dinner." 

Bilba left before any of the others could comment. Fili and Kili shared a look before looking at Thorin. "What is Aunty going to do?"

"I have no idea boys." Thorin shook his head. He didn't think he wanted to know either. He learned early on that Bila was protective of the ones she saw as her, in this life and in the past. 

The answer came at dinner. Bilba, as she said, met up with the company at dinner. She was laughing at a joke Bofur told her when two strangled yells echoed the valley. The hall went silent as eyes swiftly turned to Bilba. Bilba continued to eat, even when the twin Elves came into the hall, hair a sick shade of purple. She only spared them a dismissing glance. The hall remained silent as the scene unfolded.

"Bilba, our star shine flower," Elladan started cautiously approaching the quite hobbit. 

"Our jeweled flower," Elrohir continued, right beside his twin.

"Our blessed flower sister, whatever it is we did to anger you and warrant this retaliation, we are greatly sorry." They both gave a bow. They looked up at her from their bent position, hopeful that they would be forgiven and the cure for the color in their hair would be administered.

Bilba slowly chewed the food in her mouth, calmly patting her mouth with her napkin before regarding the two pride wounded Elves. "I gave you both warning to leave my Dwarves alone. They were off limits yes?" 

The twins nodded once in answer. The rest in attendance at dinner watched on in amusement and a little fascination at the spectacle that played on before their eyes. Bilba nodded after the twins, taking a sip of her tea. "Then please tell me why Ori, our youngest member and company scribe, came back to my suite with green colored sugar honey all over him? I remember that as one of your favorite pranks." The twin's eyes widened in understanding. They both started talking at the same time. One about how it was meant for a passing Elf and never one her Dwarves, the other about how sorry that her Dwarf got caught in one of their pranks-gone-wrong. Bilba raised one of her hands and they both silenced. "I don't care if it was meant for one of my dwarves or not. The fact is Ori got caught in it and now you will suffer the consequences. I believe you are going to travel to your grandmother's kingdom yes? Leaving tomorrow, if my memory serves me right. The color should be gone soon after you arrive. I'm sure visiting Princes can be forgiven for a little coloring gone wrong. After all, I hear hair dye is very popular among the females in Gondor right now."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"Elrond, I know the council is here. The company and I need to leave, tonight." Bilba whispered from her place beside the Elf-lord.

Elrond cast a look at the Hobbit he called a dear friend and a child of his heart before turning back to the view. "Something you can tell me?"

Bilba shook her head. While Elrond was one of the few privileged with the knowledge of her first life Bilba was careful to keep many aspects of the future quiet. "If I call for you, will you come?"

Elrond didn't even hesitate to answer her. "What will you have me bring?"

"Food and healers. I will not ask you to fight with us but we will need help to survive the winter after." Bilba watched the sun sink below the horizon from the terrace. This was always her favorite spot to watch it from and Elrond was happy to watch it with her when she was inhabiting the city.

Elrond turned back to look at her. "This battle that is to come, this is the battle you have been waiting for isn't it?"

The last of the sun's warm glow was gone from the sky leaving the stars to shine brightly in the darkened sky. She turned and walked away to return to her packing Dwarves. "Yes, this is the first I have been preparing for."

"Be safe. It would pain many if something would happen to you. All you have to do is call upon your allies and we will come." Elrond gently squeezed her shoulder. He placed a soft kiss on her head before he departed.

Bilba didn't talk when she returned to her suite. The Dwarves were packed and waiting for her. Thorin wrapped her cloak around her shoulders and handed her own pack before the company snuck out of Rivendell through the hidden and winding path that lead back to the top of the valley and onto the High Pass. Bilba, much like in her first life, paused to look back at the city. Thorin, this time, just let her have her moment before falling into step beside her. They weren't ready for the next part of the journey. They knew that many things could go wrong.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Goblin Town

"Move! Move!" Thorin yelled as the storm and the stone giants raged. When they had entered the mountain Thorin and Bilba had tried to push the company through quickly but the mountain wasn't on their side. They still got caught in the worst. Thorin had Bilba's hand in his and his nephews in front of him within arm's reach. 

"Thorin we have no choice. We-" Bilba cut off with a scream. A thrown rock forced her to break her grip on Thorin's hand so that she could fall back onto the path to avoid it. The path under her started to give. She desperately flung her hand out, gripping onto the mountain's face.

"Bilba!" Thorin twisted. He and Bilba had taken up the end of the line so he was the only one that could reach her while the pathway was still thin. He gripped her tight, hauling her up and into his arms. "I got you."

Bilba sighed. "I hate this. Thorin we can't make it through in this storm. We need to find shelter and if it is in that cave then so be it."

"I had wanted to bypass that part of the journey this time but you are correct. We won't last much longer if the storm continues." Thorin set her onto her feet, steadying her when the mountain shook. He turned to the rest of the company, who were waiting for them. "Scout ahead, find a shelter!"

"Nori is already doing that. He should return as soon as he finds something. We can only continue until we meet up with him." Balin called back from the front of the line. 

The company fought through the storm for almost half an hour before Nori found them again and led them to the same cave from Bilba's first life. Thorin switched from holding her hand to having both of his arms wrapped around her waist as the company settled down to rest. "You stay with me. I will not lose you to the tunnels a second-time Ghivashel."

Bilba could only muster a small smile. This was the only part of her past life that she never told a soul beside her Frodo about. The riddles in the dark with Gollum. She had found the ring down there and she would need to retrieve it somehow in this life so she could destroy it before it caused her Frodo, the son of her heart, so much pain. Bilba knew she was lucky in her first life not to have snapped her neck when she fell so she would rather plan on returning to the tunnels at a later date, with her Dwarves to help.

The hours stretched on. Bilba had forgotten how late into the night it was before the trap opened on them. She was sitting between Thorin's bent knees with her back resting on his chest. His arms were wrapped around her waist and her own arms covered his, finger entwined with his, as she allowed herself to slip into light sleep. 

"Get up! To arms, To arms!" Thorin's frantic yells pulled her from her sleep moments before the trapdoor opened, swallowing the whole company in the darkness below. The attack that followed was just as hectic and fast as in her first life, only this time there wasn't a goblin tripping her over the path edge. 

Bilba was stripped of her most of her weapons just as her Dwarves were. Her hands were tied and she was shoved into Bifur's side. Gloin, who was shuffling beside her, stepped closer to give a little form of protection from the goblins. Bilba knew what goblins did to females, and what they wished to do to the Hobbits race, her in particular. She could only hope that the goblins hadn't realized what she was as the company was forced down tunnels that twisted and turned. The stone was crudely cut away and opened into a large cavern that looked like it hollowed out most of the mountain. Across a number of questionable rope and wood bridges sat the goblin king in all his grotesqueness. 

The king, sitting on his throne made of rotting bones, perked up at the sight of the company. He pulled his lips back in a twisted smile, showcasing jagged and cracked brown teeth. "Who dare enters my kingdom?"

The goblin in the front bowed in eagerness. "Dwarves your Majesty. We found them on the front porch."

"Dwarves? Search them." The king continued on chanting a song about ways to slowly kill them. Bilba stopped listening. She pulled herself in, making herself smaller in hopes that the goblins would miss her. Bifur hunched his shoulders so she was tucked into his chest. Gloin and Nori both shifted to cover her the rest of the way. 

It didn't work. "Hobbit!" The screech silenced the whole assembly of goblins. Eyes turned to look at Bilba. A shard of ice ran down her spine leaving her shivering. She straightened her spine and help her head high. Hobbits, or more so she herself, had gained a reputation for killing goblins and orcs when they could find them. Her tattoos would be what sealed her fate and the goblins knew this too. The one before her sliced blindly at her back. The company yelled and fought to get to her but they were herded back. Thorin yelled loudest, trying to draw attention to himself, but the goblins didn't wish to hear him, or the others, as rags were stuffed into the company's mouths. 

"Will you look at this. The Flower has come to us to die." The King struck out with the steel scepter that had leaned beside his thrown. Bilba fell to her knees as she bit her lip, fiercely holding in her pain. "Long have you hunted us, killing us. We will get our vengeance. Bring out the bone crusher! We will hear her screams yet!"

Bilba was starting to wish she had fallen off the path like in her first life. "Oh, and you think you will be the one to cause them? You, oh great king of the dying goblin race, will never get that pleasure." Bilba spat out as goblins surged forward. She was ripped from the company and thrown at the king's grimy feet.

"We have been waiting for this day. We will break you, you will scream, and beg for death." The king stepped closer to her. Bilba bared her teeth at him. "You will scream down, down in goblin town." The last sentence was said in a sing-song voice. 

Bilba knew she needed to do something. Gandalf was going to get here to save the day but she needed to stay alive and mostly unharmed until then. The king leaned over her form and she took her chance. She shot up, shoulder slamming into the goblin king's stomach. The king swiped at her, making Bilba stumble back. Goblins surged, all of them wanting a piece of her. Her shirt and cloak were shredded as they all tried to mark her skin. Bilbao struggled, biting and kicking, but she refused to scream or cry out. Claws drew blood along with knives and rocks, her flesh was bruised and ripped yet she held her tongue. The rope holding her hands secured released yet her freed hands couldn't help her as there were too many of them and she could reach her only dagger left on her person.

A flash of light from behind the goblin started every one. One of the goblins kicked her as he turned. That kick had enough force to push her off the platform and into the darkness below. Bilbao didn't remember the trip down but she woke to pain and darkness. 'Great Lady, have I committed such great of crimes in my past life?' 

With pain pulsing with her very heart Bilbao forced herself to push up onto her hands and knees. Her breath left her as the pain spiked. Her ribs creaked and shoulder flared with fire. Biting her lip Bilba forced herself to her feet. She had to move. She had to find her Dwarves. With that, she started her long trek. She stumbled and tripped but kept moving, that was until she arrived in front of a familiar lake. Bilba wanted to curse her luck. She was in Gollum's territory now. 

Bilba pulled the single dagger she had left. It was a small thing, only the length of her hand, but it was wickedly sharp. She wasn't getting caught unaware like last time. She wasn't playing a game of riddles in the dark. She was going to get the ring, kill Gollum, and get out of the mountain alive. Bilba was silent as she took careful steps deeper into the cavern. She circled the lake, knowing where she found the ring originally and listened carefully for any sounds. She found the ring in the same place as before, laying on the shore beside the lake where it fell from the former Hobbit's person.

Bilba didn't hesitate to slip the golden ring onto her finger. The world shifted to shadows of gray and white. She saw objects in the dark easily and the whispers were loud in her ears. The ring was hissing softly, promises of giving her the world, of power beyond her imagination if only she would give herself over to it. Bilba had never heard the ring in her first life. She wished she couldn't hear it now. Her stomach rolled at the voice tone, soothing and promising. A shuffle of rocks behind her pulled her from the ring. 

Gollum was behind her getting into his little canoe, Bilba hesitated for only a moment before her blade sliced through his thin neck. His body fell into the awaiting dark water as she breathed a sigh of relief. Relief in the absence of a future threat but also of the creature finally being put to rest. Gollum was once a Hobbit before the ring twisted him into the creature he was now, and no Hobbit was made to live life like he did. Gollum should have been released to his rest long ago.

Bilba pulled the ring off her finger and placing it into a small pouch she had made just for it. The pouch was on a thin but strong chain around her neck. She would have the ring but it wouldn't affect her like it before. She wasn't going to lose herself to it like in her first life, like when she almost attacked her Frodo for it before his journey. With that done Bilba ran through the cavern into the tunnel that Gollum showed her before. It was time to meet up with her Dwarves.  
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.  
"Thorin if you go after that damned orc..." Bilba growled to herself, once again hanging from a tree branch. Thorin was in the tree next to her watching the orcs and wargs. "Thorin, listen to me. If you go after him-"

"I'm not going after him. We will handle him at a later time. For now, we stay safe. The Eagles will be here soon, we just have to last till then." Thorin heaved himself up. 

Bilba could understand that. The orcs were below them, waiting for the trees to either fall or burn them out. The tree groaned, branches cracked under the intense heat of the flames. "The tree might not make it that long."

A sharp cry stole her attention from the death awaiting them to the small shapes of their approaching salvation. Thorin chuckled in her ear. "You were saying, love?" 


End file.
